


Cracking the surface

by DashWrites



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2003), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Lots of tears, Other, So much angst, blood warning, mention of drugs, some fluffy broments, you just want to get Leo and Splinter a damn torch
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-21
Updated: 2017-03-21
Packaged: 2018-06-09 19:07:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 18,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6919492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DashWrites/pseuds/DashWrites
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set in an AU, the turtles now in their twenties are finding a world ruled by Karai, gaining the people's trust with a series of lies while offering humanity a mutant free zone known as ' Paradise '.<br/>The main focus is on Leonardo, he is the main character here in a very brutal world, the young adult having already faced many hardships! ( All will be explained, there will be a lot of going to and from past and present. )<br/>Though Raph, Mikey and Donnie are a very heavy influence on the main story line, lets say none of the turtles are having the time of their lives right now. I will follow their stories and hardships, don't worry!<br/>The world it's self has aspects and locations based on the 2k3 and 2k12 TV series, to what I hope is a good mix of both.<br/>Leonardo ( a mixture of 2k12/2k13 ) and an very elderly Splinter ( 2k12 version ) are the only family members still living in the sewers, the other turtles have chosen different paths in their lives, some not by choice.<br/>Looks wise my turtles are a combination of the following incarnations:<br/>Leonardo: 2k3/2k12<br/>Raphael: 2k3/2k14/16<br/>Donatello: 2k3/IDW<br/>Michelangelo: 2k3/IDW</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Close call

**Author's Note:**

> I want to thanks my friends, you girls know who you are! who listen to me babble about the story line and to those who have sketched and drawn up pictures from some of the upcoming chapters, a lot of the plot is in parts and needs bringing together, and I've delayed posting anything to do with my AU until now.
> 
> There are already many pictures of Leo out there on the net!  
> Some will give away later parts of the story, but for those interested here is a few pictures of Leo!
> 
> * This one is by the lovely MsObscure: http://msobscure.tumblr.com/  
> http://www.deviantart.com/art/for-Dash-610003830
> 
> Leo out on patrol alone in a very dangerous NYC
> 
> * This next one is drawn by the wonderful Turtle-sketches ( http://turtle-sketches.tumblr.com/), uploaded on my Tumblr ( along with a lot of other pictures of my AU ) http://dashtumbles.tumblr.com/post/136763649437/im-in-the-process-of-writing-a-tmnt-au-the
> 
> Leo looking distraught, prob my first picture of Leo in my AU and remains one of my firm favorites..prob drawn around a year ago.
> 
> http://dashtumbles.tumblr.com/ For more pictures!

Cracking the surface  
Chapter 1

 

“ He went that way, do NOT lose him this time, or I'll have your heads.”  
The figure in black was already moving with his unit, even before he'd dished out those orders. Panting lightly he made a neat jump from the roof top, following a speedy figured as he descended from a fire escape to the floor.

Issuing orders was easy, keeping one step ahead of their target was where the elite ninjas training really came into it's own.  
Using his hands he used both to divide his ten strong team, digits pointing as each flick of his finger ushered a silent command which had the ninja vanish into the shadows, following the elite's orders without question.

Foolish

Just ahead of the ninja pursuing him, Leonardo skidded to a halt the realisation dawned on him that he'd been herded to this location.  
Yes-he'd been a fool, which only in turn showed how desperate he was in his very survival, a growl escaping parted lips, the chase had lasted long enough.

“ There he is..that bastard..take him out, kill him... I want his de-shelled carcass before me, take NO chances.” The man shouted, this time his plan was working perfectly.  
“ Don't forget he is the reason we have lost so many brothers..” The black-clad man reminded his team, adjusting his sword, not needing to remind his men of the repercussions if they failed their master again.

Leo's heart pounded, He'd been pressured towards a collection of street lights, giving him little cover and next to no shadows to lose the ten strong gang of foot ninja with.  
His form shivered, icy orbs remained narrowed as he kept in mind this man and his followers locations, his lean posture already coiled and ready.

From a strategic point of view he's been lured into the perfect place in the enemy's favour, a narrow alley way..the police wouldn't catch on and disturb them, he needed to amend that. The walls were also high, with little space for Leo to manoeuvre, should the need arise, this bunch were no amateurs, the Foot symbol proudly displayed on each ninja told Leo who had sent them, he'd expected the retaliation after how hard he'd hit the organisation recently.

They gave him no chance to react or get his bearings, the trained group all going for the tired turtle at once, their attacks perfectly coordinated, these ninja were not messing about, then again neither was Leonardo.

Leo's daito was drawn and held in hand in mere seconds a small 'whoosh' as the longer blade met the air, the weapon leaving the turtle's saya before the ninja could land a blow, Leo already disengaging to get himself into a more favourable position.  
Steel on steel clashed almost simultaneously, Leo turning and ducking perfectly to predict the assault of weapons, their soul purpose to impale him, no messing about- it was do or die.

Leo, was breathing heavily, the cold winter air slowing him, having little choice but to control it or risk giving away any cover he was gaining, the chilled air and dampness only adding to this perfect ambush, turtles didn't fair well in the cold.

“ Get him, get him.” the leader shouted now, his commands issued in Japanese, the foot members obviously selected personally for this task.  
Years of training had Leo able to dodge or deflect the blades expertly, his thin yet toned body bending flexibly despite his large carapace, hard turning his shell to catch a blade meant for his head.

Oh how it hurt!, the blade cutting through his sensitive shell, hitting nerves, the katana had been swung so hard it was embedded in the top right of Leo's carapace, as if the foot member had been swinging and cutting into a tree trunk.  
The nerves being struck caused Leo to whine, biting his lip to stop himself crying out as his mind went back to coping with trying to be a few steps ahead of his adversaries, he'd been trained to deal with pain.

Focus

Taking a steadying breath Leo went for the now weapon-less ninja, the blade still caught in his carapace, with a fast spin Leo's feet danced as the hilt was ripped clean from the man’s hands, leaving it still caught fast against the first layers of his already damaged shell.  
Luckily the hit was towards the other side of his shell, the left side already heavily torn and mangled from an old wound. just shy of giving him a matching scar, enraged Leo wasted no time in making a counter attack.

A scream was heard, with the tell-tell sound of a man gurgling, drawing his last breath, Leo's blade pulling away from the man’s throat, blood spraying the turtle with his life essence, a cold callous look in the Leo's once innocent eyes, lifting a hand and waving the stunned ninja around him on, inviting them to take a chance, showing two could play mortal combat.  
Pulling the offending blade free from his carapace with a hiss, Leo threw the weapon into the gathered ninja, not a single one falling for his feign.  
It only gave Leo a little time to recover as the assault continued, giving the lone turtle just enough time to draw his shoto, left hand shaking slightly as it did so, another old injury to his wrist.

With both blades in hand, the turtles fighting style changed from defensive to a mixture of both offensive and defensive moves.  
Pure luck had Leo dance away at the right movements, gripping the ground with three toes as he span, kicking up dirt and rubble in the area, rotating his blades to bring the sharp edges pointing outwards, slashing out and causing more screams to fill the cold night air as his twin blades connected with deadly precision, each movement made resulting in a fatality as ninja fell around his deadly dance, screams filling the night air.

That was six, leaving three pawns and their leader to go. Leo grew more confident, having used his dance diversion to strategically move the fight in his favour, heading towards darker grounds. The only lights here were dim, not the bright ones from their previous location, however that didn't mean Leo was going to be any less cautious, any ninja favoured what they were given to work with.

Silently, Leo pulled free his tanto, the mini blade leaving his hand at the same instance, perfectly shattering the glass street light above him, and at one drowning the ninja in complete darkness, the only sound the glass as it rained down from the street light, connecting with the ground.

Utter darkness.

Leonardo's only Partner now he fought alone.

Now the tables had started to turn, Leo at once melting from view, his eyes changing to white, narrowed and deadly already moving the moment the glass had landed. He made short work of two ninja, hardly detecting him as he rode the shadows, breathing controlled and perfect, one ninja silenced before he could even scream, the other gurgling and spitting blood as his crimson decorated the brickwork of Leo's counter ambush, their bodies landing on one another as they fell.

“ The fuck is he.?.”  
All ninja praised the darkness, but the group were starting to slip up now, panic setting in.

Perfect.

Another scream, the last pawn fell, silenced by Leo's deadly dance, the man's panic being his last mistake.

That left just the leader, Leonardo knowing the katana user was good, having been unable to detect the other since he'd issued orders earlier.  
It was a stalemate, Leo keeping his stance, breathing evenly, not allowing anything to give away his location.  
The elite in turn behaved accordingly, the two ninja having no choice but to wait for the other to reveal themselves.

Sirens sounded in the distance, go figure- in NYC nothing remained a secret for long, the screams and sounds of the fight was bound to attract attention before long.

Leonardo screamed out loud suddenly, as the sirens drew closer, that moment of distraction had caused him to miss the vital movement, something the elite clearly had waited for. The katana meant for his head, luckily missed as Leo reacted in time cursing, the blade coming down across the left side of Leo's face, crimson blood blinding the turtle as the blade sliced through his scales like paper, through his azure coloured mask, thick crimson pouring down his face, unsure if he'd been blinded or not, pure panic filling the once turtle leader with dread.

At once he fled, knowing the elite had done the same, With the sirens that close both ninja knew they had to get away, a disturbed fight was pointless now they'd been interrupted.

Both ninja had fled the scene, Leo quickly returning his blades to his saya, still hanging across his carapace, having to be perfect until he could make it to safety.

Grabbing what was left of his ruined mask, Leo pressed it to his wound, knowing he needed to keep some pressure on the dripping injury, and not leave an easy to follow trail. His heart pounded in his chest as he made for the sewers, feeling no safer despite being underground, dropping down the ladder and breathing heavily as legs hardly held his weight.

As much as he needed to get straight back to the lair, caution was what had kept Leo alive till this point. He took to the water, knowing he was bleeding as his own blood combined with those he had slain coloured the water..the thoughts about those men having a family had long left the injured turtle, he had a family depending on him, this was by far the best method to hide his tracks should he be followed.

His lungs screamed, his breath short as he ploughed through the cold, dirty water, the recent rain having it splash over the top of his thighs. Vision blurred a few times, causing Leo to stop, using his good eye to map a course that would take him home, the wound on his carapace from earlier coming back to haunt him now some of the adrenaline had left his system.

The last part of his journey had left Leo no choice but to leave the water, moving to settle against some old ' no entry signs ' and large planks of wood, concealing him from view. He sat a moment, collecting his muddled thoughts, thin body shivering.  
His vision began to swim in the dim lights in his one good eye, by now weeping as it was forced to overcompensate for the damaged one.  
His head was pounding, throbbing so much he could feel a rise of bile in his throat, forcing himself to his feet as he made the last part of his journey home.

Just another day for Leonardo.


	2. Home

 

Leonardo lifted his dripping blood covered hands to the pipes on the wall, shakily applying the combination needed by moving some pipes in the correct sequence, being granted access to the lair.  
The altered pipe clicked and moved back revealing the hidden door, though it got caught half way, grinding to a halt, giving Leo little choice other than to shoulder the wall along till he could fit, the wheels it was on screeching in protect the whole feature long over due for a fix.

Much like the whole lair really. Finally the door slid back into place, as usual Leonardo was greeted to an empty home as he took an uncertain step forward, the home he'd spent much of his life no longer a place of music, laughter or light.

Instead he was greeted with darkness save the flickering of candles in the distance, the lair its self long having very limited electric, not to mention the main heating system along with anything else he ever took for granted.  
It was hard enough seeing anything in the dim light at the best of times, let alone the fact he was doing it with only one eye, terrified he'd been blinded not to mention he felt about ready to faint, small stars starting to cloud his already limited vision.  
He began heading towards the small light source before him, memory mapping the layout saving him from walking in to anything.

As Leo made his way across the room, he paused near the aging tree that miraculously seemed to grow in his underground home, placing a hand against the worn bark to steady himself, aware he was dangerously close to collapsing now the adrenaline had long worn off.  
“ Leonardo?! My son what happened?”

Splinter was making his way towards the injured turtle as fast as his aging body allowed him.  
Clutching a candle holder in one hand while the other he used his jade staff, relied on it more and more these days evidently as he almost stumbled in his rush to get to the injured turtle.  
Splinter's nose was twitching, having clearly scented the smell of blood in the air, heavily scarred ears moved to flicker back and forth till he located his oldest son.  
He no longer carried himself so straight, his back slightly hunched as he walked, his fur turning gray in most places though it was more noticeable around his muzzle.

His eyes were misty, cataract forming in both though far more noticeable in his right eye more than the other, the old rat relying on his whiskers and senses that still worked to guide him.  
Still despite everything, there was still strength in the aged rat's strides, an aura about him that never seemed to fade no matter how old he was and how dire the times had become.  
Still Splinter was alert and very much able to take care of himself, his voice still strong as he made his way to the tree, ushering a soothing tone to settle the turtle as slightly shaky hands set his staff against the bark.  
Splinter lifted the candle before him, a grim look forming on his muzzle as he took in Leo's condition, at once placing an arm around the turtle, pulling him against his kimono and allowing Leo to surrender his weight.

“Karai she-”  
“ Shh, come on.”  
Leo was slurring, almost collapsing on his father, Splinter adjusting the candle holder in one hand while pulling Leo along beside him, leading him behind the paper doors that now served as a shared room.

The room was obviously where the two spent most of their time these days, it was nothing fancy a room with a few accessories. There was a mattress on either side of the room, separated by a table in between giving both their own allocated sleeping areas, lastly a shelf above the back wall that was littered with many objects.  
There was a centerpiece of candles on the table all ablaze in their gory, obviously what Leo had spotted in the distance, bright enough to give off a good amount of light. 

“ Come Leonardo, sit.”  
The rat instructed, at once gently pushing the turtle to sit down on Leo's own mattress, keeping a hand against the back of his carapace, keeping the other sitting up while he bunched some pillows around him, half expecting the turtle to collapse.  
There was no shortage of blankets and pillows, with the heating not working correctly, there was a huge pile of covers, pillows, towels and cushions, forming an elaborate nest, resembling a pillow fort a child would adore to play in.

Leo did as instructed, his remaining eye watching his father move to the back of the room bringing the first aid box back with him, along with a small free standing torch.  
Aiming the torch towards Leo he set it down, along with the first aid kit and a towel.  
“ I'll be back, don't move.”

Leo listened to his father's footsteps fade away, taking a steadying breath now he was home and safe. Or as safe as you could ever be living in a place with no security in a world that hated the very existence of being different or in other words – not human.  
Splinter returned carrying a bowl of water, thankfully the taps still worked though they had to make a small fire if they wanted to boil any for tea or to have a quick wash.

The old rat went down to his knees, adjusting the torch at an angle so it bathed Leo in light, the injured turtle shying away from the brightness a moment.  
Splinter ran practiced hands gently over the new gash on the turtle's already abused shell, noticing Leo's carapace had stopped any real damage from the blade, it would be sore and take time to heal but it was no where near as bad as the long and ugly scar on his left shoulder, the flesh twisted and ugly after another run in concerning the foot.  
Deciding the eye needed more attention, the rat picked up a cloth and drenched it in the water, pressing it against Leo's hand and the ruined mask he still had pressed against it.  
Once damp enough he tugged Leo's hand away, and began to gently peel away what was left of the turtle's once blue mask.

To Leo's credit he didn't cry out, only flinched now and again as Splinter began to study and clean the wound, applying some antibiotic cream with his finger, checking the flesh as he went.  
“ Open your eye.” He asked gently, placing a finger at the top and bottom once the turtle did so, having a good look with his limited vision and light source.  
“ How- does it look Sensei?”  
“ Thankfully your actual eye is unarmed, it seemed your second eye lid however will have some scarring.”

The second eye Splinter had mentioned was the white tint his orbs took in the heat of battle, while no one was sure why it happened it worked well to save the eye from harm in combat, the evidence was right in front of the ninja master, grateful that once the tissue around the eye healed, Leo would see just fine. 

“ Leonardo, I'm going to have to apply some stitches.”  
It wasn't a case of asking, Splinter having already finished cleaning the wound and shuffling through the box finding a fresh needle and some self dissolving thread.  
Moving to a candle he allowed the tip to heat up for a moment before moving to kneel before his son once more.  
“ I'm ready.”  
Leo all but whispered, sucking in a breath as he felt the hot needle pierce his flesh, his father cupping the other side of his face to keep him steady.

Honestly it didn't really hurt, more needles got bent or damaged as opposed to the other way around. Still it did sting, the flesh in that area already angry with being slashed by the sword, a sword that thankfully was not poisoned, something that Splinter had been concerned about initially.  
Shakily, Leo did his best to kept still, feeling crimson running down his face, keeping calm despite how uncomfortable the whole process was.

It went on for a little while, Splinter doing a good job as he went about fixing the leader's face, while the old rat kept Leo talking, flushing what had transpired that evening to result in his wound.  
“ It isn't safe to go out alone anymore, gone are the days you and you brothers can protect this city..you can't protect yourselves let alone the people.”  
Splinter reminded, gently dabbing the angry wound, his hands taking up some clean bandages and applying them around the wound covering most of the leader's face, the newly stitched area needed to be kept clean, and they lived in a sewer of all places.

“ The city, humans and mutants a like need to know someone will fight back.”  
Leo replied, accepting a sip of water as his father pushed the glass to his lips, surprised at how much better the cool liquid pouring down his throat made him feel.  
“ You're a fine warrior Leonardo, but you can't shoulder the world's burdens alone.”  
Splinter's tone sounded tired, a clawed hand gently set against the turtle's scar covered shoulder, an old wound now, not needing to remind Leo the dangers for making himself a target. 

“ I- it's-”  
“ Enough for tonight, rest now- your body needs it.” Splinter encouraged, his hands unbuckling the leader's precious swords, setting them aside, along with all his other blood stained clothing, making a note to clean everything, especially Leo's swords.  
The old rat wanted his son to be as comfortable as possible, gently pushing the turtle to lie down while pulling some covers over his too thin form, tucking him in.

“ Hai Sensei.”  
Splinter watched the tired turtle nuzzle in to his pillows and blankets, falling unconscious very quickly something the aged mutant was glad for.  
Clearing up around the turtle, Splinter sat by his child's bedside, turning towards the candles on the table as he at once began cleaning the blood stained weapons, imagining where the blood and all the nicks had come from based on the story he'd heard from the other.  
He noticed these days Leonardo held back less and less when it came to striking a blow, the stress on his blade obvious. This wasn't the same teenager who left the lair with his brothers, that innocence had gone, changed with the cruel world, he'd had to adapt to survive.  
Taking the cleaning kit from beside Leo's mattress, Splinter got to work with a cloth beginning to clean the blade..till a noise near the entrance caught his sharp hearing, gripping the blade's hilt a little tighter while both ears started moving back and forth..

One thing was certain, they weren't alone...

To be continued


	3. Distance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, I'm sorry I've been slow to update this fic. I've been really busy working on a TMNT comic as the writer with a friend who is the artist and so a lot of my time has gone towards Magnet! if you're interested in that, I'm happy to drop a link to the pages already published.  
> Now! I've had plenty of comments and PMs asking me where the boys are! patience they will all appear! I promise, just some a lot sooner than others.

Cracking the surface  
Chapter three

 

Splinter grew tense, his nose twitching rapidly as he caught the scent, while those large ears moved to lay back, after a moment he relaxed visibly, setting down the sword as he half turned to glance over his shoulder allowing the light to illuminate the being as they grew closer.

The footsteps grew louder and more hurried, urgent as they seemed to follow the trail of blood.

“ Leo?, Master Splinter? Are you guys okay? There's blood..it's all over the doorway..it's..everywhere!!”

“ It's okay Michelangelo.”

Splinter soothed his youngest son, lifting his cloudy orbs as the orange banded turtle made an appearance, slightly out of breath from his panic, his ocean blue orbs wide in panic.  
The adult had changed considerably over the last few years, on both the outside and within.  
While Leonardo was the shortest of his brothers, Mikey wasn't that far behind him, though it was hard to tell now he chose to dress in human attire these days.  
Freckles dotted both his now chubbier cheeks, worrying as he looked past his aging father to the collapsed form of his brother, at one noticing the heavy bandaging around his older sibling's head, along with the obvious damage to Leo's already heavily scarred carapace.

“ How bad?”  
Mikey took a step closer, wanting to reach out to his brother, though was almost afraid he'd snap and go for him, injuring him further- it was common knowledge not to touch Leo at all when he finally did sleep.  
“ Possible eye damage though it seemed clean when I bathed it, just a scar if we are lucky.”

“ A scar hmm? Only Leo can manage to get one in a bad ass place..pfft! My scars suck, meh! in places you can't even see 'em!”  
He chuckled, letting out a breath as the adrenaline began to leave him.  
“ I got some leftover pizza for you guys, still warm.” He offered, setting the small pile of boxes he'd been carrying down on the table.

Michelangelo had moved out of the lair to live with Woody, a human friend of his around the same age, the pair meeting when Mikey ordered a pizza from a firm Woody worked for.  
The two had quickly become friends, not phased by Mikey's appearance, they shared a love for pizza, video games and an easy life.  
Together they rented a small shop they'd converted into a pizza parlour lovingly named ' Cowabunga Pizza', above the store was an apartment the pair shared, though in all honestly it was a bachelor pad and Mikey would have it no other way!

The apartment and store had become home to him, plus waking up with the sun peeking in through his curtains was still a novelty that hadn't worn off, not to mention the fresh air filtering through an open window. Still there wasn't a day that his eyes didn't study the family picture on his desk, one of the last photos taken before the family was split apart.  
While Woody ran the store front, Mikey was hidden out back, in his element cooking the various orders that came his way, their small store had become very popular, a demand for Mikey's cooking.

Since leaving the lair, Mikey had taken to wearing a long open fronted jersey shirt, with a large M on the top left of the shirt, his name on the back along with the number ' 04', along with a baseball cap featuring the logo of his store.  
Even now he stood there with his hands pushed into his pockets, the tails from his orange mask running over his shoulder, the only clothing save his belt that he still wore from the 'old days' as he liked to call them.

“ Thank you my son.” Splinter added with a smile, patting the floor beside him to invite the other to join him.  
“ No probs dad, oh and here-” He sat next to his father and began to root around in his pocket once more, fishing out a few notes and placing them next to candle, allowing the old rat to see them.

“ Michelangelo, You don't nee-”  
“ I do, I know how much your medication costs as well as a few other expenses, I wish you guys wouldn't be so stubborn and would move out of here..this place just isn’t the same since Don vanished..”

Mikey lifted his face, allowing to be bathed in candlelight, his baby blue eyes wide with concern and sorrow.  
“ He..he isn't coming back, I know you and Leo are here thinking he's going to walk in. But he isn't sensei..even if he did do you think he'd want to find out you and Leo were living here..with nothing?”

Donatello had been acting strange in the months leading up to his disappearance. While the genius had always liked some privacy while working on his projects, he'd become almost reclusive after seeing his family die in an alternative dimension, not to mention his transformation due to Bishop's outbreak.  
While the events had happened a long time ago, Donatello had been hell bent on doing anything he could to make sure nothing like that ever happened to his family again, worried their DNA could change as they grew, he was often caught muttering that he needed to prevent such things from happening.  
One morning the purple banded turtle was just gone, taking nothing with him and leaving no message. He'd been seen leaving on the lair's security camera but the longer the genius was gone very soon the very technology he'd worked on went with him.

Splinter's hand moved to rest on Mikey's shoulder, a sigh escaping him.  
“ We have spoken about this before, I'm old and this is my home. A place all my family know where to find me despite you all having grown so..divided.”  
Mikey watched over Leo a moment, his brother was so thin, his once leaf green skin dull and covered in various scars, this place wasn't helping his older brother at all.

“ Leo won't leave you.”  
“ No, while that is partly right it isn't the full truth. Don't you see your brother never wanted these changes? He still does everything you all did as teens. He gets up, trains and meditates and when night falls he insists on going on patrol – alone.”

Mikey nodded sadly, knowing the old rat spoke true, that didn't mean he had to like it though.  
“ Let me guess..tonight was The foot? Why does he insist on this life? He could get a job like Raph and I! Well if you can call what Raph is doin' a job... Still he has to stop living in the past.”

“ When did you become so wise my son?” Splinter added with a laugh, in turn getting one back from his youngest son.  
Splinter's expression changed again though, clearly going back to his train of thought.  
“The foot, Karai especially might appear to be the saviour of this city, but Leonardo will not forget Karai betraying him and the hardships he went through while captured by her..”  
“ I know and I don't believe for a minute she's changed in her fake lil world.” Mikey growled, having heard the story of Leo's time kept captive by Karai many times over. The female he'd come to trust betrayed him, leaving him scarred and broken, used even, kept like a caged animal and treated as such.  
It had taken a well planned rescue to get Leo back, though even now they had to wonder if they'd left behind a good part of Leo's sanity at that establishment.

“ Has Raph been here?” Mikey asked, changing the subject.  
“ Yes, to drop off some money, while Leonardo was on patrol. He did not stay long.”  
Meaning the red banded turtle had wanted to avoid Leo, while the pair were known for fighting these days it almost always ended in raised voices and would almost certainly come to blows if Splinter hadn't come between them in recent years, now it was easier to just avoid each other.

“ Typical..I guess I'll call in and see him sometime, I just dunno..don't care much for his living choices these days.”  
“ It is your brother's choice, like it is yours to live where you are.”  
“ I know that, but what Raph does and what I do are worlds apart.” Mike argued, folding his arms across his plastron.

“ True, but it's the path we have all chosen.”  
Splinter looked tired, this life wasn't easy on the old rat.  
“ Yeah and I don't wanna brag, but I think I got the best deal out of it.”  
“ Maybe so.” It was at that point a whine escaped Leo, the turtle moving to roll on his plastron, catching both their attention. Falling silent they watched as the oldest turtle rose a hand to scratch where the bandages covered his eye, though he thankfully didn't wake and soon settled.

“ Well, I gotta get going. Do you need me to get you anything..like sooner than usual?”  
Raph and Mikey took it in turns to help their father and brother out, while Raph was able to get hold of medicine not available over the counter, Mikey often got shopping delivered to his place under Woody's name. Both paying cash to help the other, now April and Casey had moved to Northampton permanently it was the most logical way of living without their human friends help.

“No, you have already been a help bringing us your cooking.”  
“ Hah, you got it..I'll call by after work tomorrow, since you guys don't have a phone at all- pfft.”  
That got another smile out of Splinter, pouring himself another cup of tea, eyeing up the pizza knowing it was nicer warm.

\---

Leo wasn't the only survivor of his encounter with the foot, the elite who'd managed to strike his face was finally reporting to Karai.  
The kunoichi's tower was the tallest in NYC, surrounded by blocks of apartments, shopping malls and a park though most noticeably was a large shield, like a bubble that covered her tower and the surrounding area, no one got in ' Paradise ' as she'd named it, without extensive interviews, mutants were forbidden all together.  
When her father had retired, Karai had worked on steps to invite select families and beings to share Paradise, she'd quickly become a saviour to the people offering them protection while in exchange she lived comfortably and without interruption.

They paid well to be there, and never had any desire to leave. While on the outside the world was slowly getting out of control, gangs constantly fought, there were frequent shootings and crime. While police did their best reality was looking grim, and only those with money were protected by paradise, and let's face it there weren't too many who made the cut.

The elite left the shadows and made for the entrance to paradise, pausing a moment to lift a dog-tag to the two ninja guarding the entrance.  
The dome was visible from miles around, a special energy surrounded it that one simply couldn't push past. It had taken Karai's team a long time to perfect but it did it's job keeping out the problems, while also creating it's own weather system to make the place seem as natural as possible.

“ Tag accepted, place your hand against the block and look at the scanner with both eyes.” One man commanded, while the other guard was ready at a moments notice, taking not chances after a few ' hiccups ' in the past.  
It was standard when one wanted to re-enter the dome, though soon the man was allowed entry. Waiting for the double doors to seal behind him as the next set opened, again having to swipe his tag.

Once in, he took a route through the park, there was no need to hide here, the foot were heroes and even now families paused from their games or picnics to send a wave to the man, the elite simply nodding his head as he made haste towards the tower.  
Again it took a series of guards and identity tests before the man could even get close to Karai's personal quarters.

Situated at the very top of the building, Karai was sat in a pale gray marble throne, the bamboo decor around her just as elegant. There were two smaller thrones either side of hers, though both were unoccupied at that moment.  
While she had doors leading out to private places, this was where clients got to meet with her, the throne room alone showing off how much currency she had to her name.  
She looked particularly bored when the elite entered, dressed in her black business suit, her hair tied back the foot clan leader had clearly been entertaining.

He walked up the red carpet, the fine material held in place by strips of gold, moving to squat and bow his head while being between two large flame pits that stood not that far from the female.

“ Report, where are your men?”  
“ Mistress, Leonardo he was just..”  
“ Are you telling me you lost all of your men to ONE turtle?”  
There was a fire in the female's eyes, her lips drawn tight.

“ He is reckless, I managed to wound him though”  
“ Wounding isn't worth that many men, I want him dead, get out I'll call for you when you're needed.”

The man left, leaving the female frustrated. Quickly turning her head to one of the doors as Oroku Saki appeared dressed in a kimono, slowly making his way to his daughter. He walked with a stick these days, though was far from frail.

“ While the rest of the turtles leave you be, Leonardo seems persistent..maybe it's time to get your new..project on the go.”  
“ Yes father, once my scientist team are sure they're ready..he will be crushed..and when the others come after me it will be easy enough to look like a mutant attack...they will die and I'll be rid of our old enemy once and for all.”

The sly female pulled herself to stand, adjusting the short skirt she was wearing, missing her regular clothing.

“ You know..for the good of the city.” She laughed again walking towards her private quarters, shutting the door.

“ Yes Leonardo..a storm is coming for you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And while I know I've mentioned a lot of things that have happened in the past, I will go over some events as flashbacks, going between present and past till we are all caught up! I really hope it's not confusing!  
> I've left some little hints in these chapters so far. : ) Hope you lot are enjoying it, I kinda suck at multi chapter fics it's been awhile since I attempted one.


	4. Below the surface

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet Raphael ~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cracking the surface, Chapter four:  
> Hello! Finally an update. I'm really sorry I'm so slow at updating!  
> Still hope you enjoy, thanks for all the kudos and comments really appreciate them ~  
> See end notes for some pictures from this AU! : )

Cracking the surface  
Chapter four

“ Great job Raphael.”  
“ Yeah man, right on the money as usual bud...next round is on us..or some money off your 'usual'.”

The red banded turtle was sat at a bar, freshly poured beverage before him. One large hand shakily held a cigarette to his lips, inhaling deeply before letting out a cloud of smoke, joining the many other smokers in the facility around him.

The two humans who spoke up moved to seat themselves on bar stools either side of Raph, the turtle almost ten times their size yet they did not fear him, they admired the turtle if anything and Raph was perfectly at ease around them.

While the bar was your typical establishment, there was more to it than that. Firstly, it was under the surface in what was once a subway station, though the bar was only one part of what had become known as ' The Underground.'  
While Karai had only granted only the very rich humans entry to Paradise, that in turn had made the streets a dangerous place, leaving some desperate and to fend with nothing..not an ideal place for families to be raised. There was only so much the authorities could deal with, and these days there were places even the law stayed clear from.

The Underground was a safe haven for mutants, humans of all ages – anyone was accepted. While there was a slum like feeling to the downtrodden place, it did come with it's own rules which so far had worked out perfectly.  
Subways had become homes and a marketplace to trade goods. Mostly people traded for food or things they wanted. Ex electricians helped out with lightning in exchange for clothing for instance, or if you had nothing material to offer there were safe private places one could offer themselves in exchange for goods.  
But if you could fight..not only could you earn good cash but you also became one of the prime sources of entertainment for those who lived here and at times those above ground ventured below to watch if there was hype.

One of the largest station platforms was part of the ' The Pit ' While the name sounded ominous it was the name of the large bar where Raphael and two ex-purple dragon members were currently sharing a few drinks on a typical evening.  
The Pit was used by everyone, it was always lively,full of live music the sound of beings socialising and enjoying themselves.  
Barrels turned to one side made one table, while piles of car tyres made another, anything and everything was reused here.  
Christmas lights decorated the bar, blinking joyfully all year around along with friendly staff who loved to gossip and catch up with the locals on any news they were missing out on.

“ Yer? Jus doin' my job, what I'm paid ta do after all.”  
Raphael shrugged, stubbing out the rest of the cigarette in the ashtray before lifting his pint glass again.

While Raphael had always been many times the size of his siblings growing up they'd all treated each other as brothers. Though it was never clear before their mutation if they were related or not, it didn't matter- they were family now or were.  
Raphael had obviously been dosed with a generous amount of mutagen compared to his 'siblings' which had caused him to grow even larger and naturally more protective of his odd family, on cold winter nights the three smaller turtles would huddle together around Raph for warmth, he really was the protector of the family something that had never changed.

That didn't mean he didn't use his sheer size to bully his siblings at times, often ending in a reprimand from Splinter, or was used to the young turtles advantage when it came to reaching things that his brothers simply didn't have a chance at getting.

But those were the old days, days long gone..

“ But the way you caught his face, I swear I heard the crunch- ouch! That ain't ever gonna heal right.”  
Raph had taken up cage fighting in part of ' The Pit '.  
There was a large arena, with tall bars that set it back from the crowd who could sit or stand to watch the fights in the circular area. It was gambling of course- bet on who'd win! And while anyone could enter it was mostly used a source of income to the fighters, something Raphael had instantly picked up on when leaving the sewers, it covered his rent for the small room he called home and had some cash to send back to Splinter- his family still very dear to him.

He was the favourite to win these days, though that didn't mean he remained clear of injuries. Scars covered every inch of his body, his plaston heavily scarred and worn down in places. Raph's carapace was so broken in places that parts had to covered in metal, the nerves there dying or long dead, it was hard to tell what Raph did feel these days.  
He used his bare hands to fight, never once had he turned up with his Sai for battle. His hands so disfigured and bandaged it was hard to tell if they even worked right, though to Raphael as long as he could hit someone – hard, then it was good enough.

The emerald skinned turtle lifted golden eyes to glance at the human who had spoken, letting out a chuckle, a single fang appearing to rest over his scarred lip as he recalled his last fight.  
“ Well, I ain't gonna go easy on no one..ain't what I’m paid ta do.”  
Apart from his shredded and broken looking crimson coloured mask, the only other item Raph wore from the old days was his belt, modified with a few pouches hanging from it obviously carrying currency and other objects with him..one didn't leave items of value in their own homes, not here in the Underground anyway.

“ You never do, so..can we get you anything?” Unfortunately in times as hard as they were currently, even the mighty could fall from grace, Raphael included, here in the Underground especially it was a part of life, accepted and considered normal even, drugs were an escape.

“ Gym candy?” There was a hungry tone to Raph's voice. Steroids had become a huge part of his life now and the currency he took home was more than enough to keep himself floating on the addictive substance.  
While there was far worse on the market, luckily Raphael had refrained from indulging on other 'goodies' the shady pair of humans seemed to have on their person.  
It was no wonder that the large turtle had grown even more impressive over time, from muscle growth to his bulky build, not to mention a impossibly short fuse if that was at all possible, the affect of the drug painfully clear.

“ I got ya candy right here.” The man answered promptly, taking a moment to slip open the worn leather rucksack he was carrying, looking through a few small bags till he found the one appropriately named.  
He passed it to Raph, the mutant looking over the contents. With a grunt the mutant dipped into his belt pouch and passed over some notes and coin.  
“ Thanks Raphael, pleasure as always doin' business. Hey bar keep- another round here on me.”

It was the same each week, Raphael won fights in the week and the two got his discounted goods with the winnings he helped them earn. It was a situation that worked for them, it had become habit and their life, like many others who lived there.

Raphael slipped the bag away, just as he heard his name being called across the bar, having the large turtle glance over his shoulder.  
“ Hey Jen, what's up?”  
Jenny was only eight years old, her long brown hair pulled back in braids that showed off her bright blue eyes.  
Her clothing was worn, holes in the knees of her pants while her hoodie was long, going over her knees which somehow suited the thin child, smears of dirt on her cheeks as she ran at the turtle with open arms.  
“ You woooon! You was like 'take this' then you went 'boof!' And he span! He spannnn and fell over!” The girl shouted excitably, copying Raph's moves from his earlier fight. Jen was content when Raphael easily scooped her up to sit on the bar, where the child shifted towards the turtle and settled to hug Raphael's arm, an arm that was about as big as she was.

“ Ya, he was an idiot huh?”  
“ 'course! A propa! idiot!” she giggled in reply to the turtle. The two dragons downed the rest of their beverages, patting Raph on the shoulder.  
“ Same time next week fellas.” The red banded turtle called after them, hoping between the bag he had just purchased to go with what he had left on his being would last that long.

He turned his attention back to Jenny, the little girl still unrelenting in her death-grip on his arm.  
“ Wheres ya ma and bro at?”  
“ At the market, food shoppin' ”  
“ Let's go find 'em.” Raph downed the rest of his pint, giving a few waves to people he knew as he left the bar with Jen in tow.  
Letting out a yawn he picked the little girl up easily for a piggy-back.  
Though she was far from a toddler, part of the reason Jen loved the turtle was the fact she could sit a leg on either shoulder, her hands playing with the remains of his tattered mask. That and she could see everyone from her perch, easily spotting her mother and brother when they reached the crowded market.

Woman both human and mutant winked in Raph's direction as the passed, he was a well known flirt and all around 'great guy' here, highly respected something that hadn’t just been handed to him when he'd first arrived.  
After Don had vanished, Leo and Raph had argued almost daily often resulting in an exchange of blows, often the subject going back to Donatello's disappearance, Raph blaming Leo for not noticing a change in the genius' behaviour.  
That was one of the first things to drive Mikey away, his family had fallen apart, the final blow being when the orange banded turtle had almost gotten injured getting between his older siblings.

Raphael had known he had to leave, though he'd chosen this new way of life that didn't mean he didn't miss the old days and most of all his family.  
“ Der Raphie!” Rolling his eyes, Raphael allowed the child to tug his mask tails in the direction she wanted him to head, cutting across the market to meet up with the other humans.  
“ Jenny! I told you not to run off. I'm sorry Raphael!” Raph smirked, lifting the child from his shoulders and setting her down next to her family.  
“ Nahh it's fine, she just wanted ta watch me fight it seemed.”  
“ I'm gonna fight toooo one day! So is Jake! Right Jake?” The girl's older brother nodded, Raph was clearly their role-model which frightened the turtle knowing these innocents wanted the type of life he'd so easily fallen into.  
“ Any news on finding your missing brother?” Their mother asked, keeping a hand on both her children as they seemed set on wandering off and doing their own thing.  
“ Nah..gonna meet a couple of contacts now, never know eh?”  
“ Good luck.” She encouraged, patting the hulking turtle's hand.  
“ Come on you two home! Say bye to Raphael.” Both children did so eagerly, Jenny hugging the turtle one more time before they disappeared into the large crowd.

\---

Raphael continued to walk, leaving the more crowded areas, heading down some of the twists and turns that lead off to the main housing area. Rather than heading to his tiny home he continued past, making for the sewers before stopping in a pitch black tunnel, having to almost crouch to get in the narrow path.  
“ I know ya there, c'mon.” Raphael shouted, Amused when he saw movement in the shadows. If the pair of cats didn't want to be seen they could easily get away with it, luckily Raphael had an appointment.  
However this particular feline pair would show themselves when it suited them, and when they did have information to share it cost a pretty penny.  
“ Hob, Tigerclaw – ya two got anythin' fer me?”

The domestic cat and the tiger mutants stepped out of the shadows, Raphael himself backing up till he was under the dim lights, glad to be out of the small tunnel.  
The two cats had become partners some time ago, both wearing trench-coats and large stetson hats with room for their ears.  
It was pure coincidence that both cats were missing the opposite eye from each other, often resulting in jokes about them having one pair of eyes for the job.  
“ No word on Donatello.” Hob, the much smaller being answered with a frown, casually leaning against the wall. Information on the missing turtle was eluding the two cats- well known for their success in doing their job, and while they had no information that meant in turn Raphael had no money for them.  
Tigerclaw’s ears twitched and moved back unhappily, this case was giving them problems and he was starting to wonder if it was worth meeting up only to have no information from the surface or underground that they could offer the turtle.  
“ Nothing...” The tiger confirmed with a sigh, letting out an irritated growl.

“ Figured..” The same crushing feeling from last week came over Raphael, the small glimmer of hope taken from him yet again.  
“ Eh..see yer boys next week.” Both cats nodded before fading quickly from view ready to work for their next client.

Raphael let out a growl, tempted to take out his anger on the poor stone wall before him.  
As he walked away he grew more annoyed, feeling alone in the search for Donatello. While he understood his father was old and almost blind, that was excusable.  
Mikey worked hard and had money to bring to the table, that was helpful. It was Leo who as usual ticked the hot-head off. Leo didn't work, didn't search for Don and only seemed happy to lecture Raphael on his chosen way of life all the while clinging to a life that was dated.  
Of course Leo did search while patrolling, not that Leo had ever said this to his brother, often getting into shouting matches before civilized conversation could take place.  
With a heavy heart, Raph took a lighter and cigarette from his pouch, making his way home – alone stuck in limbo for another day.

Was Donatello even out there? Better still was he alive?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Raphael's design was put together by the wonderful Levs! ( http://levana-art.tumblr.com/ )  
> I know he is huge in this incarnation, but couldn't help myself. It happened by accident when Lev's sketched him next to Leo and the idea stuck that the leader looked simply tiny next to him!  
> Below are some art she has drawn for the AU! think she's done a wonderful job! a lot of these she simply surprised me with <3  
> Lots of Raph ( and some Leo ) below!:
> 
> https://65.media.tumblr.com/b261168b3ee537d195958d756c41f6fc/tumblr_ocz3ohVLuH1u9gi3po1_540.png  
> https://67.media.tumblr.com/132d4b507c0c293926b2c393ba2695aa/tumblr_oa0wufEwOV1u9gi3po1_540.png  
> https://67.media.tumblr.com/a46b0f03746b5a13cb6dae39864684c7/tumblr_ob96thsNe51u9gi3po1_540.png  
> https://66.media.tumblr.com/363f71de00da22ecdd35987f5a68831d/tumblr_oayt78Gu361u9gi3po1_540.png  
> https://67.media.tumblr.com/5fe1d762cc7ed1d040db89e16fffb906/tumblr_o6tejaYW9o1u9gi3po1_540.jpg


	5. Bad Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: This is mostly a flashback, exploring some of Leo's past and the cause to the large scar that a few people have asked about!  
> See end notes for a speed video of my very talented friend doing a drawing from this chapter!

Cracking the surface  
Chapter five

Leonardo rolled over in a disturbed sleep, beads of sweat collecting on his brow, as he made a sudden movement, an almost feral like growl escaping parted lips. From across the room Master Splinter lifted his head in the direction his son was sleeping, it wasn't the first or last time this morning that Leo appeared to have been stuck in a particularly bad memory.

Simply waking the distressed turtle wasn't a good idea. Splinter had learnt first hand that sometimes he oldest son's mind wasn't always as focused as it had been.  
As a father is was incredibly hard to not rise and attempt to comfort Leo, instead opting to light some lavender scented incense to ease Leonardo's troubled mind.

Leo's mind was replaying bad memories, his legs twitching as he slept. In his dream-state has was running...running around a corner he'd reached the meeting point...

\---

“Leonardo!”  
The turtle crossed the alley to move closer to the shadows, blending in till just his head, intense blue orbs were visible in the low light.  
“ Karai! ”  
The two had been meeting frequently for the last few weeks, this time the pair met just outside of ' Paradise ' the massive dome that protected the 'decent' people of NYC, keeping the 'scum' out as people liked to say.

“ I thought you weren't going to show.” She smiled that oh so sweet, devious smile, the one that had sent Leo head over heels in love with the woman again, needing the comfort in his life..everything had fallen apart, this was his chance at happiness.  
She closed the distance between them, moving to wrap her arms around the turtle, the trusting and lonely turtle moving forward to meet her..until he let out a yelp of pain.  
Karai had jabbed a needle into the turtle's neck, leaving it hanging out of his scales as the surprised turtle grabbed at it in agony, oh how it burnt his flesh as it entered his system!

The alley filled with foot ninja not so long after, and a large van backed into the alleyway as their master called for them.

“K-Karai...”

Leo's vision swam as he collapsed the drug taking hold of the slim mutant quickly and knocking him clean out.

“ Take him.” Karai spat, dusting her hands off on her trousers like the fact contact with Leo had made her dirty. Her nose wrinkled as she looked at the fallen turtle, her ninja gathering the turtle up and placing him in a metal cage, like he was an animal.  
Leonardo was not too gently thrown into the cage, situated in the waiting van, at once driving off to its destination.

Back at Paradise, a few hours had passed since the capture of Leonardo. Leo's cage has been re-located to Karai's special quarters at the top of her impressive pent house that overlooked the entire city, her city.  
Still unconscious, Leo had been stripped of his gear and swords, leaving him with just his blue mask, symbol that he was the turtle leader. He'd had a collar placed around his neck, shackles on his wrists and ankles, then placed back in the cage, left to sleep off the sedative.

“ Rise and shine, turtle.”  
Karai sat in her what could be best described as a throne, looking with boredom at the once slumbering turtle.  
Her minions dressed in black proceeded to throw ice cold water over the turtle, which at once startled the cold blooded leader, Leo gasping, trying to crawl away to the back of the cage, having to move on his hands and knees due to the low ceiling he'd been caged in.  
Shaking as the drugs still did a number on his freezing body Leo could do nothing but wait for them to be called to a halt.

First Donatello had left without a trace, then his constant arguing with Raphael had eventually come to blows, Michelangelo getting in between them had been the last straw, as much as it had pained Mikey, he moved out.  
It wasn't long after that Raphael declared he had better places to be, the words ' Leo, you're a loser, stop living in the past..get with the times' had been the hulking turtle's last words.

“ Stop daydreaming Leonardo, look at me.”  
It was hard for Leo to focus, unable to stop swaying on the spot.  
“ Karai..I trusted you.”  
“ Oh Leonardo, you always do and that is what made this so..easy. Since your meddling siblings stopped interfering with my plans, don't think I don't know you've stopped a few of my little ' missions' being completed...your brothers they all let go and moved on, why can't you?”

Leo's foggy mind was a haze as he tried to think carefully before answering the kunoichi.  
“ What you do behind your forcefield I can't control..but the moment you or your clan cause trouble in my city I wi-”  
“ YOUR city?” Karai looked amused, a sound resembling a laugh escaping her.  
“ Oh Leonardo, the whole city is mine, shield or no shield..it's just easy to keep 'pests' away.”

“ What are you going to do with me? I thought mutants weren't part of your paradise? We are just 'animals' to you..” Leo sighed, how many times was he going to stupid enough to believe the deceitful woman before him? He'd been blind to see the signs, with no one to talk him out of it.

“ To answer your question though, you're going to do what animals do best..fight, you're going to fight for me Leonardo! As my gladiator representing the foot clan.”

There was only one place that Leo knew that held such fights between mutants. Once a year the Underground held tournaments where different gangs and cities came together under strict code and conduct to allow warriors to represent them in battle.  
There was a cash prize as well as the feeling of power in the winning team, in conclusion meaning those wanting to pick an organisation to join would be more inclined to join the winning team, thus gathering the best fighters and create an army.

A secret army in Karai's case, going on behind ' paradise ' who else knows what plans she had in motion.  
“ I believe you're aware of the Underground and it's yearly contest, you should thank me..doesn't your brother Raphael dwell there? Think of it as a reunion! You might even get to fight him.”

Leo felt his heart pound in his chest, while he kept clear of the life his brother had chosen, he knew he'd never be able to hurt his brother..but Raphael? He was almost certain, based on their last encounter that he'd enjoy himself in a fight if they were paired up.  
The only difference would be Raph volunteered himself to try win the cash, where Leo would be forced against his will.

That wasn't all that was install for Leo, he was kept caged like an animal, carted to schools and used in talks with students studying science and even taken to labs to have samples taken, sometimes to the point it was painful.  
He was treated like nothing, an experiment with no feelings.

He stood on an examination table, on his hands and knees. A leather muzzle pulled so tightly across his face, he couldn't speak even if he tried. He was chained up, even a thick chain on his collar stopping him from lashing out as students simply studied the poor turtle, petting and stroking him as they took readings.

It was more income for Karai, schools and research paying a lot to borrow her 'pet' in the name of science.  
Thankfully with the Underground fight etching closer all of that stopped in favour of giving Leo access to the foot clan's personal training area.  
Armed with his swords and gear, Leo enjoyed sparring and training with the humans. Though he was under secure lock, it beat being kept as an experiment.

He'd accepted his fate, his brothers would hear from their father he'd never returned home. Even if they did their best to find him, paradise was almost impossible for them to enter, plus Karai could easily let the city know mutants were attacking, making the turtles out to be the ' bad guys ' in all of this.

One evening Karai was watching her clan sparring from the seating area overlooking the training area, a knock on the door behind her had the guard instantly on guard.

“ Enter.”

One of her elite ninja entered, removing his hat and going to one knee.  
“ You may speak.” She said finally, eyes going from the training session to the kneeling human.

“ Mistress Karai..use me to represent our clan..not that..that mutant”  
Karai seemed to ponder a moment, tapping her delicate chin with a finger.  
The man all but begged, still kneeling and looking at the ground out of respect.

“ No no, I want him as the leader of the 'rebellion' to be made an example of what happens when you meddle in Foot clan business...besides the last man I entered last year never made it home, I can't afford to lose you, Marcus.”

“ I understand..” With that the elite left, frowning when he paused to watch Leo facing off against some of his colleges, the turtle really holding his own...he needed to do something about it.

 

After sparring Leo resumed his own training going over old kata that lifted his soul, though rusty he found once his joints began to loosen up, everything came back to him. He was surprised at how fast he was! His lean frame meant he had to rethink some of his usual stances and moves, his swords whirling through the air as he danced his kata.

By the time he'd finished training the whole room had stopped what they were doing in awe of the turtle, Karai had to admit, he was truly impressive.

A week later, Karai was escorted with her elite guard out of Paradise's main gates, wrinkling her nose at the rancid smell of NYC outside her precious, perfect town.  
Leo was kept on a chain at her side, sat squatted down till she tugged him to stand.  
She was driven to the main area that lead to the Underground, from here it was all on foot.

Leo walked upright through town, his heart pounding looking for any weakness he could use to escape, get to the sewers..see his family again, sadly he was too well guarded.

Once they were granted access by the Underground's guards, Karai and the others went to the main ring.  
The arena was buzzing, Karai leaving Leo in a large holding pen with his weapons, gates so high that none of the fighters could see each other, each room was dark as to not wind up the fighters so much or allow them to see each other.

Karai took her seat in the special booth, surrounded by her elite guard and other various beings of any significance, it was a symbol of power, even if Leo lost or won, it made little difference the clan status, it just mattered really that she had attended.

From inside the dark holding area, Leo paced, hands running over the smooth walls looking for any way of escape.  
Hours passed and the turtle was losing track of time, all he could hear was cheering or booing, all he could smell was blood..

Then his gate opened.

Blue orbs blinked at the bright lights, at once the thin warrior stepped outside into the sand covered arena, happy to be out of the containment area.  
The area outside of the ring was heavily guarded, and the guards heavily armed. Leo knew it would be suicide to try and escape.

He heard another door open, seeing a monstrous mutant walk into the arena. It was clearly a crab of some kind, black unlike the traditional red colour., the same amount of legs as a normal crab, yet its main body was more like a lobster. The poor creature was mutated with pipes running through its armour, it's flesh twisted and bubbled, one of it's eyes larger than the other.

“ Leonard of the Foot Clan, Vs Titanium ..owner wishes to remain anonymous... Bids on this fight are in, here we go ladies and gents..three..two..one!”  
Leo drew his swords, the crabs' name giving him a hint as to what metal the poor mutant had been covered in, though other than the obvious pincers he saw no other weapons present.

In the crowd a familiar face stood up gasping. Raphael was freaking out, he'd been resting after winning his round much earlier in the day, the name Leonardo had got him on his feet, though in reality there was nothing he could do with the amount of security around. He knew his brother had been captured, he and Mikey had been planning an escape along with their human friends, this wasn't how he'd wanted to see his brother..and the condition he was in was shocking.  
“ c'mon bro..get 'm.” The turtle whispered under his breath, heart pounding as he watched his brother circle the much larger mutant.

All the arguments, fights and cursing were thrown aside the moment golden eyes locked onto Leo's thin frame, only he messed with his brother, how dare Karai do this!

Leo continued to circle Titan, both fighters obviously slaves, both knowing they had to do this or face certain punishment.  
Leo's orbs turned white as he began his attack, after learning his speed was a new found gift he jumped, and turned on the spot, trying to confuse his foe, making sure to keep out of the reach of those massive claws.  
He darted in, moving in a zig zag across the sand covered area floor, daito held for defense, his shoto sword pointed outwards.

Titan walked sideways, a little more at home in the sand covered floor than Leo was, striking hard and fast at the place Leo had been only seconds ago. Crimson eyes blinked, quickly turning its body and repeating the action he'd made, surprisingly fast for the size of his claws.

Leo jumped, timing his decent perfectly and landing with Titans' head between his legs, impaling his sword deep into the shoulder flesh between the metal shell the crab used for defense.  
Oh how Titan screamed!, blood oozing from the wound, Using his claws wildly trying to pry Leo off, the turtle gripping part of the creatures' shell, his other hand clinging to that sword hilt buried deep in the crab's shoulder area.

“ C'mon Leo..dats it..kill 'm fuck him up...you'se got diss...” Raph chanted, on the edge of his seat now, golden orbs transfixed by the scene before him.

Leo was about to lift his other sword, going to impale the creature's skull..when he'd failed to notice something..there was a small tank melted against the crab's' shell. As Titan lifted his claw to Leo's face, rather than snap down towards him, the claw opened up..the pipes running over his body were connected to the tank, for suddenly long flames rushed from open ended pipes buried and mutated to Titan's body, there reach stretching far further than his claws.

Leo somehow managed to avoid the fire, without a single mark, falling with a thud to the ground, already tired due to being kept locked up and unfit, not to mention the lack of food and drink.  
Panting he forced himself to his feet, swaying, only one sword now the other was still buried inside the crab.

The turtle rolled to the side as the claw came down, letting out a feral snarl of his own as he jumped, aiming for his sword hilt.  
He was too late to notice Titan swing his second claw, the large pincers catching his shoulder, plastron and carapace, crunching down, cracking the armour like he was freeing a nut from it's shell.

Leo screamed!, blood oozing around the pincer as Titan held fast. To make matters worse for Leo, the pipes where the flames had fired from were still hot, the flesh between his carapace and plastron bubbling away, boiling and bursting as the flesh was cooked alive, disfiguring the once smooth leaf green skin.  
Pinching his eyes shut, Leo swung his sword, Titan's moves sluggish with his shoulder wound, Leo's own shoulder wound causing him to whimper painfully, still attached via the claw.

Desperate, Leo stretched his hand, catching the crab right in the eye with his blade, well aimed yet a lucky hit given his state.  
It did the trick, the claw holding Leo's shoulder opened, the blue banded turtle falling to the sand with a thud, his blade still in his hand.  
Titan's eye was hanging from the end of Leo's sword, veins and all, crimson dripping from the usually non-violent turtle's blade.

“ TIME”

The judge shouted, armed guards moving between both fighters, Titan on his feet and hissing, unable to cover his eye or shoulder, Leo however was just laying in the sand, hand hardly able to hold up his sword, panting and shaking, clearly spent.

“ Judging by the injuries, and the fact Titanium is on his feet, he is the winner!  
The Foot Clan is out of the match.”

Laying in a puddle of blood, Leo passed out, his hand still gripping his sword.

Titanium's owner, still in a cloak sent another mutant, this one a Sting-ray to retrieve the crab, the snarling beast, ripping Leo's sword free and throwing it in the sand beside his body, spitting at the turtle, leaving a trail of spit across his cheek.

 

Raph was beside himself, right at the sidelines now, growling angrily yet knowing..there was nothing he could do!  
To make it worse he watched Karai's elite collect the turtle, dragging Leo like a disposable item out of the area, the blood left in the sand a grim reminder...

Leo woke up.

Panting, he sitting up so quickly Splinter went straight to his side. At once his hand went to his scarred shoulder, then to his newly damaged eye, the second gift the foot clan had given him.  
“ Leonardo..steady..what is the matter?”  
“ I..was dreaming..no..it was a nightmare if only it wasn't real.” Looking distraught, Leo simply simply let his shoulders sag, leaning against his father as the rat moved in to provide comfort.

“ It's the past? Again my son..even in rest you're so troubled. Yet you're too stubborn to let go..I'm old now, but you still have time move on.”  
“ Father with all due respect, I'm not stopping the foot because of what they've done to me...it's the right thing to do, everyone is running only I'm going forward.”

Splinter simply smiled, that was the Leonardo he remembered, focused on his task.  
“ I know Karai is up to something, and it's likely she has someone even above her benefiting, I won't stop till the city is back to the way it was...”

“ You can't do it alone.”  
“ I'd never have escaped the foot back then alone either, I'm going to need my friends..and more importantly..I'm going to need my brothers..”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> http://1-2-3-4-turtles.tumblr.com/post/144696375058/this-afternoon-i-worked-out-how-to-do-process  
> T-S ( or 1-2-3-4 turtles now ) was kind enough to draw the scene between Titanium and Leo! take the time to admire her mad drawing talent!


	6. Let's get even

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's taken me ages to update! Christmas was hectic! as to be expected. Now both Christmas and New year are over decided it was time for a little update!  
> I want to take this time to say a huge thanks to those of you who like, comment and have even drawn me fanart, you lot are amazing! This update is for you guys!
> 
> EDIT: I'm not sure why the text when copied over had been spaced out so much paragraph wise- it's weird never had this problem before! sorry it looks so spaced out and disjointed! I will look in to fixing it up.  
> Only noticed after I posted, hope it isn't too annoying. :

Cracking the surface  
Chapter six

A few weeks had passed since the incident involving the foot clan, while Leonardo was recovering both mentally and physically, the battered warrior vowed not to let Karai or her clan stop him from the nightly patrols he felt the need to perform.

She wasn't allowed to win or threaten him anymore, not if he could help it anyway. While it wasn't usually in the once gentle turtle's nature to be so rash the fact he was adamant about standing up to her was a sign that he had changed more than he let on or had noticed for that matter.

Standing before the bathroom mirror Leo scowled at his battered reflection, pressing a digit against the long scar the elite ninja had left him, the candle in his other hand shining light on the ruined flesh all but healed apart from the slightly mismatched skin, thankfully his vision was fully intact.

Another grim reminder to go with his cracked plastron and carapace, fingers tracing over the mangled, bumpy flesh that ran over his shoulder, feeling the prominent cracks that ran over his body, old injuries that still from time to time caused him pain.  
He spent too much time alone with this thoughts, moving on to think about the fight he'd been forced to partake in, not realising a growl has worked it way through gritted teeth.

He had to wonder what part of him Karai was going to harm next- she'd hurt his mind, and body along with his heart.  
Still he'd find what she was doing, he'd foil it even with knowing her intention to stop anyone who threatened her 'plan', especially him.  
While he'd been warned against going on patrol he had every intention of seeing what had been going on in the city while he'd been recovering, he'd been dormant for far longer than he'd wanted.

Time to show them all I'm not going to back down.

Time to make a stand.

With a sigh he fingered his new blue mask, rolling the fabric between his fingers.  
Splinter had pushed it in his hands only that morning, now the scar was healed and would no longer irritate the wound.  
He tied the fabric around his head, retrieving and lifting a candle closer as he once again studied the scarred turtle staring back at him in the mirror.

Suddenly and only for a second he thought he saw something else, another pair of eyes along with a purple mask blink back at him in the mirror, surprising Leo enough to take a step back, lifting the candle higher, eyes darting in disbelief.

He blinked and it was gone.

His heart pounded in his chest.  
“ Don-Donatello!?” Leo knew it was hopeless to call out, the moment had come and gone, he felt and heard nothing but the slight echo that was his own voice, as if pleading what he'd just seen to happen again, saying his brother's name out loud only made what happened seem real, a lump forming in his throat.

Nothing else happened.

Coming out of the bathroom, he headed across the lair, stopping under the ancient tree that grew in their underground home.  
“ Leonardo?”  
Splinter had this uncanny sixth sense of knowing when something was a miss.

“Sensei..I just thought I saw something is all..it was like seeing a ghost.”  
Leo's voice was both a mixture of excitement and disappointment towards the end, letting out a sigh- maybe he was going crazy.  
The old rat joined his son under the strange tree, watching as Leo lifted the candle he still clutched, reaching a free hand up to cup the one leaf on the whole tree, his azure gaze fixed on it, did this leaf feel as lonely as he did without the ones that had fallen to the ground below?

Sensing Leo needed a distraction from his mind, Splinter watched his son release the leaf, coughing once to gain the turtle's attention.  
“ We sometimes see what we want to see, but tell me Leonardo you spoke about bringing your brothers together, do you have a plan?”

“ I need to speak to Mikey and Raph..then we go from there, patrolling and finding out what Karai is doing while looking for Don are my objectives, father.”

Splinter grinned, it was the first time in a long time Leo was forming a plan that had the potential for involving others, despite being almost blind the old rat didn't miss the determined look, brilliantly spotlighted by the candles glow, a glimpse at last of the turtle he knew.

“ I'll do a quick patrol then call in on Mikey when his store closes.. unlike Raph he at least won't attempt to turn everything I say into an argument.”  
Splinter simply shook his head, somethings were never going to change no matter how old his children grew.

\---

Once night had fallen, wrapped in a brown cloak Leo slipped out of the lair. With his swords in easily reach he made his way to the roof tops, feeling safer away from places he could easily be spotted. The climb was easy, the feeling as wind and spots of rain ricocheting off his form made a change from being kept in the dark below ground to lick his wounds.  
With the moon and stars dancing above him, Leo made a quick patrol around the area, taking the long route to the pizza parlor his brother and friend owned.

He made a show of leaping, flipping and taking a few risks as he jumped between the building gaps, the thrill of being alive and having a purpose made the grin that crossed his features all the brighter, tonight he was a new Leonardo, or rather a glint of the old Leo was finally resurfacing.

Panting, he adjusted the cloak to sit better against his thin form, running his digits through his soaking wet mask tails as he approached Mikey and Woody's apartment window.  
He pulled his hood back up over his head as he approached, you could never tell who might be watching after all.  
With no lights on downstairs and one light upstairs he assumed the pair had closed till the morning.

Landing on the balcony half way up the back of the building, Leo tapped against the glass doors unable to see through the curtain that kept the pair's privacy.  
It wasn't long before Woody pulled the curtain aside slowly, as if expecting to see a monster, eyes wide till he noticed the soaking wet turtle, the hood over his head did nothing to make the human feel less anxious.

“ Crap Leo!..ugh why can't you call first or use the door bell like everyone else?? man! Way to freak me out.”  
Woody exclaimed, pulling the door open quickly and allowing the scarred turtle entry, Leo having pulled the hood down.  
“ You lookin' for Mike?” Woody asked, an eyebrow cocked as he studied the other, throwing him a towel which the scarred turtle used to pat himself down.  
Leo never visited, something was up.  
The confused look on the human's face made Leo's scrunch up in turn, feeling the newly scarred flesh stretch in protest.  
“ Yes..he isn't home?” It was a silly question really, the look on Woody's face said it all.

It was still surreal to think this bachelor pad, above ground was where his youngest sibling now lived. There were comics on the table, ( You could just about tell it was a table under all the things on it! ) DVDs and games everywhere, not to mention wires stretching across the floor with duct-tape across them in an attempt to not trip over them.

It honestly looked the same as when his little brother had lived below ground yet mixed with belonging that were clearly Woody's, the mess and piles of belongings all over the place made the blue banded turtle twitch, how anyone could live this way Leo would never understand.  
Looking past how his brother and friend lived, he moved to the dresser, picking up a photo from many years ago showing himself, all his siblings and a younger looking Splinter, running a digit over it to remove the thin layer of dust.

“ Eh...no? He said he was going to visit you guys..you didn't see him on your way over?”  
“ I didn't, but that isn't anything out of the ordinary, I rarely take the same route when coming to visit you and I'm sure Mikey has the same mindset and alternates his journey.”

The whole time Leo studied the photo, even as he spoke to Woody not once did his intense gaze move from frame in his hands.  
Placing the photo back on the dresser, Leo pulled his hood back up over his head.  
“ If we do miss each other, tell him I called in.”  
“ Sure Leo.”

Leaving Woody scratching his head and giving him a quizzical look, saying his goodbye Leo was soon taking a different route back to the lair.

\---

“ Thanks for the tea, I should get back to the shop..make sure you get Leo to eat some of that pizza 'kay? I need to lose the pounds he needs to pile them on!”  
Mikey rose from the low table, adjusting his jacket while stretching.  
“ Yes my son, thank you again for your visit.”

Lifting a candle, Mikey headed in the direction of the door, blinking when it began to open.  
“ Hey Leo- left you some pizza with dad get it while it's hot!”

Apart from it was Raphael who almost filled up the semi-blocked doorway and not Leonardo.

“ Hey little bro, been a while.”

It certainly had, a good few months if you wanted to be accurate. In that time Raphael had changed, and not for the better in Mike's eyes.  
Mikey couldn't help but stare, his brother had always been ripped, the heaviest of the turtles but now..well Mikey couldn't help but let his jaw drop, that was some serious..muscle?

“ 'Sup Raph, you been working out, like seriously working out?”

“Least I ain't been sat on my butt. Still least youse been workin'”

If he hadn't of joked about it, Mikey knew he'd still be stood there, catching flies. Raphael's form was hulking, ignoring the dig at him, Mikey noticed new scars running down Raph's arms, some dominated his face like a well drawn road map, and those were clearly visible even in the poor light.

How had he not realised the smell before? Even the sweat on the older turtles skin gave away the crimson banded turtle's habits, dangerous habits.

Raphael just shrugged, a deep chuckle escaped him, dull golden orbs once so full of fire rose to meet Mikey's baby blue ones. It pained Mikey to see his brother in this state, surely there had to be another path, for at the moment Raph was a ticking bomb one that could go off at any given moment.

The hulking turtle paused pressing an unlit candle he'd picked up against Mike's candle illuminating him in light giving the orange banded turtle an even better look at what his brother had become.  
Raph began turning towards the paper doors he'd be sure to find Splinter behind. in turn giving Mikey the opportunity to see the state of his carapace.

A shiver went through the youngest, seeing the edges missing, metal plates and dents covering the now dull and dying 'shield' they carried.  
Bolts and rusting metal held a portion of it together, Raphael really was a walking canvas, not a pretty picture though, definitely not.

“ You know..Raph..there has to be another way.”

Confused Raph chanted his head slightly, raising an invisible brow towards the clothed turtle as he glanced over his shoulder.

“ You're not just a great fighter bro, you can carve anything out of wood..or ice..people pay good money for that, oh-oh and you can knit, its cold up there in the winter, people would buy your stuff, man I'll even have Woody post it for you..or we can sell it in the shop?”

There was silence for a moment, Raphael letting out a grunt, passing the second candle to Mikey, who had no choice but to hold both now. A slightly shaking hand started to unwrap the thick white bandages that covered most of his hand save the ends of his digits. Raphael rose the hand towards the candle light, showing how mangled his hand had become, easy to guess both looked the same.  
The knuckles had been broken so many times they sat awkwardly, even almost pointing in on themselves, Raph's digits themselves were almost curled, claw like in appearance, day after day using his fists to deliver devastating blows to his unlucky opponents.

“ Truth is, I'm not sure I can even hold a knitting needle little brother, even if I wanted ta, this is the only path for me now, fighting reminds me I'm still alive, ya know?”

Gently Raph rose his still bandaged hand to rest on Mikey's head, lovingly rubbing it like the good old days, before Mikey knew it he could feel moisture in his eyes, why was life so cruel sometimes?

“ I- it was good seeing you Raphie..I gotta go though.”

Mikey wiped his tears away as he headed out into the sewers at a jogging pace. Here he was again running rather than facing problems that arouse.  
He let out a sigh, when had he become such a coward? it didn't matter nothing mattered- he should just be happy he had a new life a decent, honest life.

Still upset with what he'd seen, Mikey was paying little attention, hardly noticing Leo until his oldest brother's icy gaze was boring into him, unimpressed with how distracted the youngest seemed.  
Leaning against a wall, Leo once again lowered his hood closing the distance between them.

“ Eh..dude don't go that way unless you want to see Raph.”  
“ I was looking for you, but catching up with Raph later isn't a bad idea.”

Leo studied his youngest sibling, could see the distraught look on his face.  
“ Mikey, what happened?”  
“ Leo- please just tell me what you wanted to say I gotta get home.”  
“ You are home, you're just running..like I have been.”

That caught Mikey's attention going from upset and slightly offended to generally curious, his eyes studying his scarred older brother waiting patiently for him to continue.  
“ I've been so caught up with- everything. No wonder we've all drifted so far apart, I want to stop Karai the city can't go on like this but we need to do it together so first..let's try finding Don, together this time.”  
Leo kept eye contact, both pairs of blue eyes boring down on each other.  
“ I need to be the leader I was born to be.”

It truly lifted Mikey's spirits to see his big brother playing the leader role one more. There was a determination on his face the youngest hadn't seen since the foot had captured him, he couldn't help but grin his trademark grin, next he knew he'd pulled the scarred turtle into a fierce hug.  
“ I got your shell bro- always.”  
“ Thanks Mikey.”

Mikey hoped Leo could persuade Raph to join them, anything to get him out from the life he lead currently, it was killing him.  
“ Leo..please get Raph to join us..he- won't make it otherwise.”  
“ I won't lose Raph, I'll go talk to him now. I'll contact you Mikey, no need to worry.”

Mikey pulled away from his short sibling, knowing Leo was going to hold his word, Leo was his hero and inspiration when growing up, he never lied- everything was going to go as planned.  
“ We're just cracking the surface Leo, let's break Karai's little force-field like we always used ta! All four of us..”  
“ Once we’ve sorted our own problems, Mike.” Leo added with a chuckle, gently squeezing Mike's shoulder.

With a final wave, Mikey continued to jog in the direction that would lead him home. Leaving Leo to enter the lair.

He could sense and smell Raphael the moment he entered the dully lit room, the hulking turtle was just heading towards the entrance.  
Raph paused, lifting his candle to shine some light on Leo, at once his golden eyes narrowing, his lips turning at the corners in a snarl.

Returning the look and standing his ground, Leo didn't flinch as a growl escaped Raphael, the large turtle heading with purpose towards him, his posture and way he moved should've sent alarm bells ringing.

Leo just stood there.

To be continued.


	7. Coming together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What is the worst that could happen? : D

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A new chapter!  
> Hopefully you all like it! I want to thank everyone for the kudos and comments so far! especially those who let me know what they think with each chapter.  
> I just hope the plot is going alright for you lot, sometimes I see everything so well in my head that I wonder how easily I've translated it into a new chapter.

 

Cracking the surface

Chapter seven

 

 

  
  


Karai walked away from the science department, the coded doors moving to slide shut behind her, leaving the team to their appointed task.

Now she was away from prying eyes the female let out an irritated hiss, unable to hide her anger and frustration any further.

  
  


She walked with purpose to her main living quarters. On entry she noticed her father seated at the low table, tea already in hand for himself though his cold gaze rose to meet his daughter, picking up the china tea pot his way of inviting her to talk about her problem, knowing the kunoichi long enough to know she wasn't pleased.

  
  


“ Useless. They're useless!”

“ They are not on schedule? What seems to be the delay?”

Keeping his cool, the badly scarred human rose his cup enjoying the jasmine tea while Karai took a seat opposite him, moving to her knees.

  
  


“ Karai, have some patience..surely there was change from the last time?”

“ There was improvement father, but I wanted the project completed by now.”

“ Do not rush them my daughter, maybe I will pay them a little visit should we see no vast improvement. Besides there hasn't been a turtle or allied mutant spotted interfering in our affairs since your team almost took out Leonardo.”

Karai's lip curled into a snarl at the mention of the blue banded turtle, accepting some tea when it was poured for her.

  
  


“ Almost isn't good enough.. _no_ mutants in my paradise..no paradise isn't enough they need to be gone from everywhere, nothing and no one may interfere.”

Karai still held a grudge, one that Saki had planted in the woman's head since she was a child and had fueled her till this very point.

  
  


“ Yet here you are impatient for the science department to finish working on mutants...” The old man added, hiding his smirk behind taking a sip, watching Karai narrow her eyes at him.

“ No father, these..monsters will look fierce yet actually docile and when the foot take out this new 'threat', many more will seek sanctuary in my paradise. Then we work on clearing the city, starting with that wretched underground.”

  
  


Saki nodded in agreement, total domination of the city, yet this time every human seeing mutants as threat and needing the foot for protection, those aiding mutants in any way would be eliminated and treated as those they defended.

  
  


\---

  
  


Leaving the foot tower with haste a figure clad in black melted to become lost in the busy crowds within paradise.

Marcus ran a hand through his black hair, letting out a relieved sigh to be heading home to his family.

Though in his early twenties the young man had studied martial arts from day one, joining the foot had been an easy task, it's paycheck certainly kept food on the table.

He'd risen quickly through the ranks, recently accepting the honour that was becoming one of Karai's elite team. Time off was precious, it didn't happen often so he needed to make the time he was allowed count, even if he was today excusing himself which wasn't uncommon if it was for a few hours, he wouldn't be long anyway- a visit to see his family.

  
  


Dodging the busy streets, he took the final turning towards the apartment he shared, unable to keep a smile off his face, selecting his floor before taking out a key-card allowing himself entry.

The moment the door opened two excited children ran towards him, not more that five years old each wrapped themselves around the ninja's legs.

  
  


“ Mum! It's dad! he's home!!.”

The twin boys clung to their father, though allowed Marcus to lift them into his arms, before the poor man was all put pounced on by his wife.

  
  


“ Marcus! I wasn't expecting you..wasn't it in two weeks time you-”

He stopped her with a stern look, his face growing serious.

“ A short visit I saw something today and it's important I act..” He relaxed a little, not wanting to startle the family, giving his wife a kiss before setting the boys down, both of which seemed happy to go back to playing, used to their father sadly having little time for them.

  
  


“I need you to get a message out.”

“ Are you sure? Is it really the time? They won't catch you?”

“ Not if we act now, remember everything I've built up with the foot-clan was for this moment, besides they desperately need to hear this..”

  
  


“ What do I do?” The woman asked, keeping her voice low.

“ You order a pizza..from Woody and you ask for these toppings and in exactly this order.”

Marcus replied, moving to pull a menu out from a book he'd hidden on a shelf, handing the leaflet over, certain his wife understood the risky task.

It pained him that he needed her to do it, he needed to get back.

  
  


“ I need to go.”

“ I know, consider it done.”

  
  


With that Marcus headed back to work, praying he'd set the plan in motion at the right time, he only hoped his promotion to elite and being afforded new information had not come late.

  
  


\---

  
  


“ Raphael, I'm glad you're here..we need to talk.”

The hulking turtle was mere inches from Leonardo, the shorter turtle having to crane his head right back as azure eyes stared deep into golden ones, If Raph wanted to hit him he wasn't going to get a cleaner shot.

  
  


Seconds ago Raph had been about to pick a fight with his older sibling, yet he wasn't yet so lost that he'd miss the tone in Leo's voice and the new fire that seemed to burn behind his eyes, it was like looking at the Leonardo he remembered.

  
  


“Talk then.”

  
  


Still remaining guarded, Raph crossed his arms across his damaged plastron, mentally taking in his brother's condition.

Even after all these years, and the things he'd said Raphael still loved and adored his brothers, despite his attitude the break up then going solo had been almost soul destroying for the large mutant.

Seeing Leo nearly killed against the mutant creature, then there was who Don was so lost looking before vanishing while Mikey simply struggle daily to live in limbo between the surface and sewer still haunted the cage fighter.

Even to this day as he fought he pictured his brothers with him in battle, how he missed those days even if he'd never admit to it out loud.

 

Leo's voice broke Raph from his thoughts.

  
  


“ I'm going to stop Karai, I'm tired of feeling like a criminal in a city we've only ever protected..I want her to know we're back and mean business, Mikey is all for it..but I need you by my side..I hope word will reach Donatello..coax him back, or that we can find him.”

  
  


Raphael was silent a moment, digesting Leo's words. He could tell his brother was serious, he meant everything that he'd said.

“ _If_ Don is alive..but seriously yer better have an idea in mind 'cause that plan of yours worked out **so** well last time, didn't it fearless?”

  
  


The massive scarred turtle had somehow closed the distance between Leo, one finger pushing against Leo's plaston.

If it was meant to intimidate him, Leo simply brushed it off even with Raph's snarl, the leader simply wrinkled his beak and let out a low growl of his own, yet let his features remain calm and collected almost moments later, letting the other know he didn't fear him.

  
  


“This time I'll drive a sword through Karai myself..I will not let this go on.”

“ Now dats the kinda fighting talk I've missed from yer!”

While both turtles still eyed each other, it was leaps and bounds better than the last time they'd met, Leo having taken a hard blow from Raph's fist as an argument escalated, poor Mike having taken the next punch trying to come between them, they'd purposely avoided each other since, thus the discord within the family had only grown.

  
  


Leo eyed Raphael it was his turn to see just how low Raph had fallen, the drugs, his overall condition it was like a train coming off the tracks, as the leader Leo couldn't help but blame himself, he let himself and family down, it was high time he made amends.

“ Think about it Raph, let me know..but we start next week once I work a few things out.”

  
  


Leo took a step back, allowing Raph to leave, signaling the end of the conversation.

“ Ain't nothing to think about, let's fuck her up- not only for us but all 'dem below and on the surface human and mutant alike, it's no life, let's tear that bubble down.”

  
  


It was the best possible outcome, Raph had agreed in his own way to join him and Mikey, while it would take time he knew Raphael had his back, the three of them could be very formidable, they had been before and Leo wondered why he'd let that change.

The blue banded turtle held a clenched fist towards Raph, the other instantly clenching his own, but this time it was a bro-fist the pair shared as both connected, the first step in mending their broken relationship.

They both let their fists linger against each other a moment, and for the first time that either could remember, they smiled.

Deep down Leonardo knew it wasn't going to be plain sailing, but it was a start in repairing the tatters of what he and his brothers once had.

 

Lowering their hands, Leo had just been about to speak when the entrance was forced open, startling both brothers when they saw Mikey almost collapse in the entrance.

His sides were heaving as Raph drew closer the candles around the lair giving them enough light to see their brother by.

  
  


“ Mike?”

“ Michelangelo?” Both Leo and Splinter shouted, the old rat choosing to show himself now his older sons had sorted themselves out.

  
  


Raph placed a hand gently on Mikey's shoulder, waiting for the unfit turtle to catch his breath. He checked for injuries, though seeing none he assumed now this the poor turtle must have run here as fast as he could.

“ Woody's bro...Marcus...the one who helped you escape the foot Leo.. he called.”

All three were glued to Mikey, trying to be patient as possible knowing he must have really pushed himself to get here in the time he had.

  
  


“ Spit it out Mikey, what did he say?”

  
  


“ Don's **alive**.”

  
  


To be continued.

  
  


 


	8. The forth turtle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally a new chapter! Hopefully worth the wait~  
> I want to take this time to thank everyone who leaves wonderful comments! and asks me questions it really means a lot you're enjoying this AU  
> Big thanks to Shellsweet for being a second pair of eyes on this chapter, she totally sees things I miss!

Cracking the surface

Chapter eight

  
  
“ He..he is really alive..”   
  
  
Mike's voice broke slightly, using the back of his hand to wipe his teary eyes. Having spoken those words out loud after over two years of thinking his brother gone for good was a whirlwind of emotions, and really, who could expect any other reaction.?   
  
  
Those gathered simply couldn't comprehend the startling information, silence falling as all eyes looked to Mikey, the shock readable on both rat and turtle faces visible via candlelight.   
  
  
It was Leo who spoke first, moving to rest a hand comfortingly on Mike's shoulder, having to cough in order to clear his suddenly dry throat, composing himself as his mind began whirring, starting to form a plan, he was born to lead, something he was long overdue in doing.   
  
  
“ If Marcus knows something, we need to meet with him..that should be our first plan, I..no- we need details, failing that I've been in and out of there, I know some of the routes..”   
  
  
While the turtles and their father were clearly dazed by this news, Leonardo wasted no time in heading to the kitchen, leaving the warm banded brothers with their father, confident they'd soon follow after him.   
  
  
“ Go, bring your brother home.” Splinter almost pleaded, knowing there was nothing he could do physically, but now he knew the olive toned turtle was alive maybe his spirit could make up for what his tired old body simply couldn't do these days. Not that he had not tried, while Donatello had always been the hardest of the four to reach at a spiritual level, Splinter has been unable to make contact with him, he just hoped maybe this time he'd be in luck.   
Retreating to his room, Splinter prayed his sons could pull together after so long, there was simply nothing he could do but offer advice, it was on their shoulders now.   
  
  
Mikey took a candle for himself before following Raph in the direction Leo had marched off in, entering the kitchen just in time to see the leader use various weighted objects to stop a hand drawn map from rolling back up, the thin turtle's azure gaze narrowing when he stopped at the place he wanted, hunching over the kitchen table like a captain marking his his treasure map Mikey decided!, the dancing candle flames all around the table only emphasizing the image the freckled turtle was imagining.   
  
  
Paradise, Leo's finger poked at the spot, a low growl rolling from parted lips.   
  
  
Raph began to move the candles in various places over the table, giving the three brothers enough light to see by, and most importantly room for them to devise and foolproof some sort of plan. It was the first time in a long time Leo had gone over a plan to anyone other than Splinter, yet he simply fell straight back into the role, if he didn't believe he was up for it then how were his brothers meant to follow him once more?   
  
“ I knew he was alive, but why'd he take so long to be found.?! Yer wastin’ time looking at some dumb map, yer friend didn't say Karai had him, we should be out yer lookin'.”   
Raphael all but snarled, golden eyes looking over the map, placing a finger over the place that Karai named 'Paradise'.   
  
  
“Actually Raphie, don't hit me! but...I remember Woody telling me his bro got promoted?..meaning he probably gets to see all new shiny things that he didn't get to before, if ya catch my drift.”   
Mikey explained, letting out a relieved sigh when Raphael backed down, the hulking turtle taking a seat as he watched Leo place markers over various places, thick arms folded across his chest with that famous Raphael pout, was it wrong Mikey had missed seeing that? Well he had!   
  
  
“She wants no mutants in her paradise yet that didn't stop her from playing with me like a disposable pet.” Leo reminded, pressing a red topped pin at the entrance to the impenetrable fortress Karai hid behind, you didn't need a candle to know the expression on the leaf green turtle's face was grim as he spoke his fears.   
“ We also need to prepare for a trap, they could using Marcus and he hasn't realised.”   
Leo had to focus, it was hard to stop his mind wondering if Donatello was being toyed and played with the same way he had, he needed to think of the positives, his brother was alive, no fortress was going to keep his lost brother from him.   
  
“ But..I have an idea...”   
  
  
\---   
  
  
Karai matched towards the science laboratory, using her key-card to gain entrance.   
  
  
“ Dismissed.”   
  
  
Marcus and a colleague simply moved either sides of the lab entrance denied entry, both waiting for as long as it took for their mistress to call in her project's progress.   
Slyly Marc risked a glance inside the glass doors, this was the first place he'd spotted Donatello after all, not long after his promotion.   
Seeing only human staff members from his position, he let his gaze slide back to area around him, counting windows, looking at doors and possible exits, along with how many cameras were dotted in the area.   
  
  
Donatello was indeed alive, the turtle looking up and over his shoulder the moment the doors opened before his golden gaze lowered back to the task he was working on, hardly acknowledging the kunoichi when he heard her footwear tapping against the tiled floor in his direction.   
  
  
“ You had better be done.”   
  
The female's tone was clipped, her lips drawn in a thin line as she approached, her eyes going to the various monitors and large glass holding containers in the area the turtle worked.   
  
  
“ Not yet.”   
The mutant replied, his voice broken and void of all emotion.   
“ Don't not make me reconsider our deal.” Karai spat, sharp eyes moving to another scientist clearly the male was helping Donatello out on the project.   
“ Mistress Karai, Donatello has been working day and night with no food, water or sleep..”   
“ I don't recall asking you for excuses, I've given you all enough time, ample time to be done with this project.”   
  
  
Don, who was slouching over the telescope moved to stand to his full height with some difficulty, as if the simple task of standing unaided by the table hurt him, clearly overworked or pushed to do so.   
Yet those around the only mutant seemed to respect their colleague, one moving closer to aid the turtle if he should fall, his frail appearance concerning them even if Karai turned a blind eye to it.   
  
  
If you thought Leonardo was thin, Donatello was less than half the turtle he was, all the muscle and goodness wasted away leaving the genius a shell ( no pun intended ) of the mutant he once was.   
This was the outcome of missing his loving family, all of whom reminded him to eat, drink and sleep even when he didn't want to do so, without them he'd simply let himself go as they always feared he would, and worse he'd come here looking to better their lives as well as his own, he should have known better.   
  
  
“ Did you give Leo enough time to recover before you tortured him?..played with him till you'd had enough? You even made me piece him back together when he fought in the arena for you! What about my family? Did you give them time to get away before you destroyed them after all that?”   
  
  
While Don appeared a husk of his old self, Karai always managed to make the turtle retaliate, giving the science team a fleeting look at who the broken scientist once was.   
“ If I recall you were the one who came to me mutant, you needed our equipment to research a condition that ailed you in the past and you feared could come back or attack you or your loved ones at a later date, I simply asked a few things from you in return, an even trade, or have you forgotten that?”   
  
  
“ I designed and built the great shield protecting your city..I helped you with these.” Don waved a hand towards the large murky water filled containers along the back wall. “ And when I was done with my own research, it was you who didn't allow me to escape, pressing more projects on me that I never once agreed on.”   
  
  
Donatello was covered head to toe in scars, some left from being kept shackled for over a year, along with some as a punishment for not working at the correct speed.After hearing rumors his brothers had perished  and failed to find any proof, Donatello accepted this was his life, on the verge of giving up and wanting nothing more than to join his family, even trying to reach his brothers through meditation in the rare occasion he was forced to rest by those who worked with him, yet after time even that seemed to fade convincing him further he truly was the only one left.   
  
  
He lived chain free now, but there was no escape from the lab, he'd long given up anyway, the only thing he could do was stall the project long enough that perhaps death took him before it became completed.   
While he'd thought about taking his life, guards were always watching, knowing he'd be out cold and restrained before he could so much as bite his own tongue, that and part of Donatello wouldn't allow himself such a death, if he was going to go- he was sure as hell taking this place with him!   
  
  
Still dressed in the same purple mask he'd arrived with, it seemed even though all four turtles had grown apart, they all seemed unable to part with their masks, as if clinging to something familiar. The fabric hid the bags under his eyes, though the brightness in his gold coloured eyes had dulled considerably as he knew the project sadly was reaching its conclusion.   
  
  
“ And now you're helping me rid the world of your kind, so again I ask, why isn't it completed?”   
Don walked over to his work station, pulling some goggles down over his eyes, hitting the switch on the power tool he'd picked up, the sound effectively drowning out the angered female.   
  
  
Growing frustrated, Karai stormed towards Donnie,closing the distance and pulling the plug, stopping the power tool, stepping even closer to the turtle she gripped his shoulder, turning him sharply to face her.   
“ It would be completed sooner if a certain someone didn't interrupt my work.” Don replied dryly, his eyes narrowed on the woman he hated.   
  
  
While at first Don had been attentive to Karai's every command, as time had gone on he'd starting working on his own accord, rather than the project she'd enlisted him in.   
When his brother had been captured, Don had only been able to see the leader once and that had been when he saved his life, before being removed after Leo's vitals had improved, the pair never even getting to talk and Leo none the wiser to whom had saved his life.   
  
  
Having Leo captured had been a perfect threat in order to get Don to go that extra mile, but even after a while the purple banded turtle just seemed to stop showing he cared, hearing rumours his family including Leo had perished only adding to Don caring less and less.   
  
  
Karai gripped the turtle's thin shoulder firmer, nails dipping into one of the many nicks and scars on the olive turtle's skin, making Donatello flinch, his already torn scales sensitive to such abuse.   
  
  
“ We only need a few more days mistress Karai, please.”   
A young attendant all but begged, glad when Karai released Don, watching as the dangerous woman stomped to the door.   
“This is it, final warning..you have a few days and then we're going ahead with the project, no more excuses, we launch with what we have.”   
  
  
Again Karai left the lab in a foul mood, Marcus and his college at once falling in step behind her, following her to private quarters where both finished their duty, swapping as their replacements arrived.   
  
  
\---   
  
  
“ Did she hurt you?” One of the scientists asked, a frown on her face, only speaking when she was sure Karai had left, yet low enough that the guards on duty on the inside of the doors weren’t alerted.   
“ I'm fine, you should get yourself home.”   
With a nod, she looked the mutant over before walking towards the guards, handing over everything on her person before they activated some codes that allowed the worker to leave and enter paradise until her next shift, in Don's eyes those who lived under paradise were just in a larger prison than himself, and he'd helped to let that happen, he'd created this fake paradise.   
  
  
  
“ Neither one of us wants to be here, we both know we are stalling, but come on! You might have a death wish but don't drag me into your little rebellion!”   
Baxter Stockman ran his hands through curled hair before wiping at his eyes tiredly. The human, like Donatello was here against his will, the pair confined here to complete the project. The shared a bunk bed in a makeshift bed room, though the human couldn't recall the last time they'd both slept at the same time, in the past taking shifts on the work they needed to complete.   
  
  
Still the two had formed an odd friendship, both men of science after all, putting aside their differences to work together, neither wanting to be here.   
“ I can't put up with her anymore, I've had enough..I'm tired of everything.”   
Baxter sighed at Don's answer, going back to what he was doing, leaving Donatello to carry on with what he was working on, what the human didn't see was the grim expression on Don's face, Karai pushing the genius turtle over the edge with that confrontation and set time limit.   
  
  
He'd been considering his plan for awhile, It was foolproof and should take out Karai, possibly Saki too depending on his luck, the only other drawback? Don was particularly confident it would be the last stunt he ever pulled.   
Sadly, he saw no other options with what could only be days left before Karai acted on her plan, if only he knew his brothers were doing everything within their power to get to him right now, only to have it possibly blown up in their faces, literally.   
Who was going to work out their plan faster? Donatello or his siblings..   
  
  
To be continued.   


 

~ Here is a first look at Donatello in his current state! Drawn by the talented Sassatello! ( http://sassatello.tumblr.com/ ) Thanks for helping me come up with his design! 

 

 

Raph and Leo from the previous chapter! By Sassatello! http://sassatello.tumblr.com/

 

Leo and Raph by Turtle-sketches! http://1-2-3-4-turtles.tumblr.com/

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Sassatello for their help with Don's design! and the wonderful art of Raph and Leo's 'reunion' last chapter! Another big shout out to Turtlesketches too! she did the amazing Leo and Raph scene!  
> I have many more fan/gift art and some commissions! I'm going to start adding them all to the chapters each time I release, thanks so much everyone!


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